Bush gets holiday wish with R&D package approval

December 20, 2007

To expedite the resolution of unfinished appropriations business, the U.S. Congress drafted an omnibus appropriations bill combining 11 unfinished 2008 bills into one package. Part of the weight of this bill resulted from President Bush’s earlier veto of a $30.2 billion proposal on a 2008 National Institutes of Health budget, which would have meant a 3.6% increase—or about $1.1 billion—over 2007.

After a rapid succession of votes this week, with a second vote for the House of Representatives Wednesday after an amendment was made, Congress this week approved a final bill that will give most NIH institutes zero increases and a 1.1% increase for National Science Foundation R&D.

Significantly, this omnibus bill will fund domestic programs overall at the president's request rather than the higher levels in earlier House or Senate appropriations bills.

This marks a victory for Bush, who is looking for another success next year when his 2008 war supplemental request will be taken up by Congress. The proposed $196.4 billion package includes $3.9 billion for DOD R&D (mostly for development) and an extra $46 billion in war funding Bush requested in October. Some of this funding could be included in the omnibus bill.

Funding picture
Department of Energy R&D will rise, but Congress approved a sharp reduction in the increase proposed for the Office of Science. This largely neutralizes a measure that would have reversed proposed cuts in energy R&D. Fossil energy R&D and energy conservation research initiatives both saw jumps, particularly in areas such as vehicle technology and coal research. Nuclear nonproliferation R&D also saw a big jump.

NASA’s budget will increase as well, but funding shifts mean NASA’s research resources will decline. Most of the funding increases focused on the International Space Station and associated flight support technologies.

Elsewhere, substantial gains will be seen in Department of Homeland Security and Commerce R&D. Earmarks have saved the U.S. Drug Administration from cuts. The Department of Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Geological Survey and the Department of Transportation will all see some increase, but the Environmental Protection Agency will see a drop in R&D funding.

Notably, all federal agencies except the Department of Defense are operating under a continuing resolution, or temporary appropriations bills, extending funding at 2007 funding levels through December 21.

In addition, Congress finalized and the President signed a 2008 DOD budget with a $13 billion Science & Technology allocation, $2.2 billion of which would go to earmarked projects. There would be a 3% boost for basic research.

SOURCE: American Association for the Advancement of Science